Oren: Goldstone Report 'must be utterly discredited'

US ambassador Michael Oren on Saturday said that the Goldstone report "must be utterly discredited," following a Washington Post op-ed by Judge Richard Goldstone in which he retreated from allegations of war crimes against Israel carried out during Operation Cast Lead.

"In this article, Judge Goldstone contrasts the deliberate targeting of civilians by Hamas and its refusal to investigate its own war crimes with Israel's efforts to avoid civilian casualties and to fully investigate charges of IDF misconduct. Unfortunately, Judge Goldstone reached these conclusions only now, after his report seriously impaired the ability of Israel--and of all democratic states--to defend themselves, and furnished a major victory for terror," Oren stated.